Abstract [en]

Introduction: Exposure therapy is an effective treatment of public speaking anxiety (PSA), yet inherent logistic challenges prevent widespread dissemination. Previous research has revealed that Virtual Reality (VR) may be effectively used for realistic stimuli presentation, but past generations of VR hardware have been inaccessible and expensive. We reasoned that VR stimuli, delivered using modern consumer hardware and software, would enable one-session treatment of PSA, both in the form of traditional therapist-led treatment and as an internet intervention.

Methods: N=50 adult participants from the general public with clinically significant PSA were recruited and randomized to either therapist-led one-session treatment followed by online maintenance promoting in-vivo exposure, or waiting-list. The three-hour exposure session included psychoeducation and had participants conducting speech exercises, framed as behavioral experiments targeting idiosyncratic catastrophic beliefs, in front of virtual audiences, and listening to audio recording afterwards. Primary outcome measure was selfreported PSA, assessed using a validated instrument, measured before and after the treatment session, weekly during the four-week maintenance period, and at the end. After the first phase of the study, the waiting-list group received a simple VR headset by post and were given access to an online version of the same treatment (including the maintenance program), conducted their own one-session treatment followed by the same maintenance program, and reported PSA using the same intervals as before. Data were analyzed using mixed effects modeling.

Results: A significant time*group effect was found such that the treatment group reported a 6.92-point larger decrease in PSA symptoms per treatment step than the waiting-list, corresponding to a between-group d=0.84 after the one-session treatment, growing to d=1.56 after the maintenance period. Piece-wise modeling of the waiting-list group’s PSA scores before and after they received their at-home equivalent treatment revealed a 6.39-point difference in decrease (per step) after receiving treatment compared to before, corresponding to a within-group d=1.22 after the at-home one-session treatment, growing to d=1.78 after the maintenance period.

Conclusions: This trial demonstrates that simple, consumer VR hardware and software can be used to treat PSA using a one-session format, with large effect sizes. To our knowledge, this is the first study to evaluate the potential of internet-administered, at-home VR treatment, the results of which are promising.